Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Recently I attended a seminar with the Italian group Grandi Marchi (Istituto del Vino Italiano di Qualità) - an organization of seventeen wineries who have banded together to help promote development of high-quality Italian wines as well as foster educational opportunities concerning Italian wines all over the world.

If you wonder why such a group is needed, consider this: the finest Italian wines are usually cited as a global afterthought to the finest French and American wines. Consider this too: there are twenty winemaking regions in Italy which cover the entire country and the island of Sicily. Also, an extraordinary number of grapes used in making wine in these regions are completely indigenous and nearly unheard of outside of Italy. And finally, consider the fact that many people around the world have yet to conceptually shake the history of sub-quality wines that Italy has produced in the past, and think of Italian wines merely as an accompaniment to pizza or pasta.

Ahh, the obstacles and confusion start to pile up, don't they? No wonder that the normally individualistic, self-sufficient Italians are coming together to stake a collective claim in the world wine market!

The seminar was a fascinating tour of Italy. Seven members of the Grandi Marchi spoke of their regions, the climate, terroir and grapes with passion and enthusiasm. Later, the discussion turned to the difficulties they faced in sharing their amazing products with the world. Finally, we were able to taste many of their wines, as well as a number of other offerings from wineries pouring at the Simply Italian Great Wines U.S. Tour 2010.

The following tasting notes were compiled with the best possible accurate information, and are roughly grouped by region from north to south. Prices where available based on notes from www.wine-searcher.com. Starred entries were personal favorites.

*Masi Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOC 2006 (Veneto) Nose is earthy in a very terroir-specific way, but loads of fruit on the palate. Interesting and drinkable with light acidity personified in crunchy red fruit on the finish. ~$50

*Edoardo Miroglio EM Brut 2006 (Thracian Valley, Bulgaria) Hey, what's a bubbly from Bulgaria doing here? The Miroglio family and EM's oenologist are connected with Tenuta Carretta in Piedmont. That's enough for me - I love this! Yeasty, toasted brioche, great character. Not currently available in the US, alas. $N/A

Edoardo Miroglio EM Chardonnay Reserve 2007 (Thracian Valley, Bulgaria) Side note: my interest in Bulgarian wine is peaked! This has a super 'merde'y, dirty sock nose, but is light in character with notes of lemon peel. $N/A (Some availability in Italy and Canada)

*Donnafugata Passito di Pantelleria Ben Rye' DOC 2008 (Sicily) A blend of dried and ripe fruit, with the dried berries laid out on racks for 20-30 days in the sun and wind of the island. Honey-caramel color, peach and apricot and herbs, honey and raisin notes, very unusual! Not too sweet, has a lot of personality. ~$32/.375ml

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All in all, a wide-ranging and delicious experience! Hopefully this tour of Italy has whetted more appetites for Italian wine, mine included. Although the amount and variety of information regarding wines from Italy may seem intimidating, it is completely worth the undertaking. Bravo, Italia!